Beauty and The Beast
by DestinysKiss
Summary: *Upd*The Moon kingdom has been destroyed and Queen Serenity is forced to make a treaty with the dark prince: Her only daughter, for his mercy. Will Serena find the pure heart within the beast or will be a slave forever? A new twist to an old fairytale S/D
1. Blood Moon

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, or anything else. I hardly own a shred of sanity. Please don't sue.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
In the cold shadows of the night, a caped man silently awaited a messenger. In the sky above him there was a full moon, it had long since lost is magical silvery glow, and had now been replaced by an eerie red colour. The blood of its people had stained its surface. He smiled as its crimson glow fell coldly upon his face.  
  
"Your Highness." A raspy voice came from out of the darkness.  
  
The man in the cape turned around. "Show yourself!" He demanded, and drew his steel blade. The sword came out swiftly and glistened under the scarlet moonlight.  
  
"I mean you no harm, your Highness. It is I, your faithful messenger, loyal to you always." The messenger sounded sick, sick in the mind more then his body.  
  
"Speak." The man demanded, sheathing his blade.  
  
"The queen. The queen, she is expecting an attack tomorrow night. There was a spy, a spy told her." The messenger stuttered, trying to get the words out.  
  
"A spy!" He bellowed. "Who! Who dares to undermine me!"  
  
"I do not know, your Highness, your grace. I am just your faithful messenger. I know nothing, nothing like you do, your magnificence. But I know that she will come to you, tomorrow. She sends word from her land, her voice travels along the air, it calls in the night, master. A call from the white kingdom, she wants to stop the bloodshed." The messenger looked up, his beady eyes shone in the bloody light. "She will come for you at noon, to make a treaty."  
  
"No!" The man yelled, a string of angry spit flew out of his mouth. "Go to her now, and tell her to give me what I want. Tell her that she will meet my demands, or her world will be destroyed!"  
  
"What are your demands? Master, oh highness, your wonderfu..."  
  
"Shut your trap!" He demanded and swung his sword at the grovelling messenger. Its icy blade stopped at his neck, the cold steel pressed against his skin. "It is not your concern, she knows my demands. She has known them for well over half a decade! Now go!" He released to blade and watched the messenger scurry away.  
  
"Tomorrow," he whispered to the moonlight. "By tomorrow evening, I will get what I have been craving for all of these long and lonely years. Else tomorrow evening, everything you love will be destroyed."  
  
  
  
  
  
Meanwhile: In the White Moon Palace.  
  
  
  
A beautiful queen sat on her throne. Her silvery hair fell around her face, almost looking scruffy. She looked out the window, daydreaming with her big blue eyes. They were eyes that had seen too much pain, too much suffering. Eyes that reflected the sadness in her heart. The war had lasted over five years. She had watched the fall of her people, fighting for something that they didn't know. Now, only few survivors were left and the next attack would see the end of her kingdom. Her once peaceful moon had been stained with the blood of her people, its eerie glow reflected her defeat. And now the Prince of the Earth was about to finish off what he started many moons ago.  
  
A cool breeze blew in from the window, blowing a silvery tear off of her china face. A girl walked into the room, blonde hair, blue eyes, as beautiful as the first dawn.  
  
"Mother." The girl spoke in an angelic voice. "Mother, you are dreaming again."  
  
Queen Serenity snapped out of her trance. "Sorry my dear. I have just a lot on my mind these days." The girl walked up to her mother and put her hand on her face.  
  
"You have been crying," She wiped away the silver trails. "Do not worry, Mother. Never forget that we are the good in this war. You have done what is best for us all. No matter what happens, you must never forget that."  
  
Serenity looked at her daughter, love shining through her weary eyes. "Oh Serena, war is never best for anyone."  
  
"But if you didn't, he would have taken your throne and destroyed you. The people love you, they would rather die in battle then to be servants to a tyrant like him."  
  
A lump rose in Serenity's throat, she could feel more tears coming on, but for the sake of her daughter she held them back.  
  
For a moment, they embraced each other before a loud shout was heard from outside. "Queen Serenity!" A guard called from the corridor. "The dark Prince sends word. A messenger."  
  
The two royals snapped out of their moment. They both looked up at the guard, who was dragging a messenger in by his rags.  
  
"Speak." Queen Serenity said with authority. "What does he have to say?"  
  
The messenger drew back his hood, exposing a pair of beady black eyes. "The most wise and honourable master sais for you to meet his demands, else you will all be destroyed." He squawked. His mannerisms were like that of a vulture, his head bobbing from side to side. He eyed the two beautiful ladies, thinking only sinful things, given his chance he would try to take them both, if there were no guards in the room. "His demands will be met!"  
  
"Demands!" The blonde angel snarled, looking very out of character. Years of hatred and of living in fear had turned her once innocent heart to stone. She was beautiful on the outside, but broken on the inside. "You can tell that ugly bully that he will never have my mothers crown! Never!"  
  
A foul laughter came rushing in from outside, black smoke swirled about and formed the shape of a man. Although the smoke could not define his features properly, his loud voice still bellowed through. Serenity knew that voice all too well. "Ugly! Am I." The smoke raged. "How do you know that I am ugly, when you have never even seen me!" The guards in the room charged towards the smoke, slashing at the blackness in the room. All of their efforts were fruitless, the blade slashed through the air and out the other side, no harm was done.  
  
"I don't have to see you to know that you are ugly. You heart is vile and twisted. Only something as foul as you could pollute our lands like you have." The blonde girl stopped momentarily for a breath, but she wasn't going to end her onslaughts there, she had been waiting years to tell him what she though of him, and now that she had her chance she was not going to miss it. "You are the most disgusting thing that I have ever known." She spat at him, the stream of her saliva went straight through him and splashed on the floor behind. "We will never meet your demands. You will never have my mothers crown!"  
  
The smoke howled a wicked laugh. "Is that what you think this war was about? Your stupid kingdom!" The smoke floated up next to the young angel and circled beside her. "No, my dear. I am after a prize far greater then any kingdom." The smoke lifted up her hand and pressed it to where his lips would have been. "My angel, this war is about you."  
  
In an instant, she snatched her hand away. With her big blue eyes she looked up at the queen. "Mother? What is he talking about?"  
  
Queen Serenity looked down at her feet. "I didn't want you to know, I thought that it would be best for everyone."  
  
"Know what? Mother, what is he talking about?" The queen was speechless.  
  
The smoke placed a hand around the blonde girls waist and whispered softly into her ear. "My beautiful angel, I never wanted your kingdom. All I want, is you." 


	2. The Fate of an Empire

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A.N: Wow! Thankyou for all your reviews everybody! I love them; you have made me so incredibly happy. ^-^ Thankyou! Thankyou! Thankyou!  
  
Well, the new chapter is finally here. Thankyou all for being so patient with me, I know that it was a long time between updates, sorry. Really, really, sorry! I promise that now I will update often, AT LEAST once a week. (However, lots of reviews would probably motivate me to update sooner ^_- {Not blackmail, just the sad truth}) But if I don't update by next week, you all have my permission to personally come here and poke me with a burnt banana. Well, enough of my blabbering. Enjoy!  
  
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Disclaimer: Don't sue me; I don't own her or anything. Oh, wait. I own bills, lots and lots of bills.  
  
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A cold shiver ran down her spine. Serena looked at her mother, hurt and anger streaming from out of her hazy blue eyes. "Is this true?" She ran over to the Queen and knelt down at her feet. "Mother, is that true?"  
  
Queen Serenity just sat there, staring at the dancing smoke. A silver tear ran down her cheek and splashed onto her daughter's forehead. For a moment, her sad eyes displayed a flicker of anger, but it soon faded away leaving her with just an empty expression, an emotionless shell.  
  
"Mother!" The blonde angel shook her hard, trying to make the queen snap out of her trance. "Mother, please tell me he is lying!"  
  
The smoke laughed again. "Believe me, my sweet girl. I am not lying, all this war, all this suffering, all this death, all of it, is for you." She could feel the smile upon his pitiless face.  
  
"Shut up!" She screamed at him with more desperation in her voice then possible. "Mother! Please, answer me!"  
Queen Serenity looked away from her daughter and gazed back outside into the crimson night. "Yes, my child." She closed her eyes, sending another tear to come spilling forth. "He is speaking the truth."  
  
For a moment the young princess was stunned, stunned because what she believed she was fighting for, was all a lie. She had grown up watching the suffering of her people, she said goodbye to the soldiers and wished them luck before they went into battle. None of them to return and it was all because of her. Her heart felt heavy, as though her blood had turned to lead. "Did they know?" She asked her mother, she felt revolted now and it showed in her voice. She didn't hate her mother, she never could, but now she felt something worse then hatred, she felt betrayed. The one person that she trusted most had lied her to.  
  
"No." The queen answered in a soft voice. "They did not know the true reason, but even if they did, they still would have fought for you." She reached out for her daughter's hand, only for the girl to snatch it away coldly.  
  
"You lied to us all?"  
  
"I did it for you. I would never see any harm done to you. Never!" She cried out the words. In her mind, Serenity knew that she had done wrong. Her heart, however, told her otherwise. "I just wanted to protect you. I wanted to keep you safe."  
  
The young girl dropped to her knees and frantically started wiping her hands clean on her dress. "Blood," She cried, her tears falling on her hands. "Their blood is on me. Mother, how could you do this too me?"  
  
"No daughter, this was not your doing." Serenity cried and knelt down next to her only child. "Their blood was spilt by me. You had no part in this massacre. Do you hear me? It was my doing." She snatched Serena's hands away from their obsessive cleaning.  
  
She looked up at her mother; her beautiful eyes turned red from tears. They were about to embrace each other, when a wicked voice cut through the moment.  
  
"It does not matter whose fault it is. Soon, there will be no-one left to remember what the war was even about."  
  
"You Bastard!" The beautiful princess cried, shooting daggers at him through her bloodshot eyes. "You will surely rot in hell for all you have done!"  
  
"Me?" He laughed innocently. "I didn't start this war, your mother did. She could have ended it any time. And now, it is me that is here and prepared to make a treaty, to save your worthless kingdom. Yet, still she refuses. Your people's blood is on that wench." He snarled, pointing to the distraught Queen who was crying on the palace floor.  
  
"So you will end this war?" The young princess stood up bravely. Somewhere, deep down inside of her, her heart still mourned greatly for the deaths of her countrymen. But with a graceful flick of her golden locks, she ignored the pain inside, like any good leader would have done. She was not going to have any more blood spilled in her name.  
  
"Yes. Give me what I want, and this war will be over." He hissed, his voice as smooth as ice, and twice as cold.  
  
"Never!" The queen shouted, his words ending her tears. The water disappeared from her eyes and was replaced by an angry glow. "You will never have my daughter! You hear me. You will have to kill me first."  
  
The black smoke raged, growing twice as large in size. "By tomorrow night, I will have what I want anyway, whether you are alive or not. Do you understand me? Deny me, and you and your kingdom will be destroyed forever! And she." He floated over to the beautiful princess. "You my dear, you will be mine."  
  
"Get away from her!" Queen Serenity yelled and charged towards the smoke. She leapt in the air to tackle him, but instead she fell straight onto the floor behind him and landed with a thud, her bones shattered from the impact. The young princess ran to her mothers' side and helped her up off the floor.  
  
"Is that all it will take to stop this war?" She spat at him, still having trouble believing that so much death could be carried out in her name. "And this war will be stopped? You will leave our kingdom alone?"  
  
"Darling, no! You mustn't!" The queen begged on her knees, wrapping her shaking hands around Serena's waist. She looked up at her daughter and stared into her familiar blue eyes. In them, she saw the same determination that she used to have many years ago, her heart sank as she realised that nothing she could say would change her daughter's mind.  
  
The smoke bowed politely, his voice turned svelte and seductive. "Yes, you have my word. You come with me, and this war will stop. As long as we are together your kingdom will be safe, your mother will be safe."  
  
"No!" The Queen still pleaded. "Daughter, his vast armies are growing weak. We can defeat him. This time tomorrow night, our brave warriors will have tasted victory!"  
  
The princess drooped down to her knees and met her mother eye to eye. "Look around you mother!" She said sternly. "Our brave warriors are simply children with shovels and rakes. Our kingdom is nearly destroyed, one more battle will end it."  
  
"If we all."  
  
"No! Listen to me, please!" She begged. Both of them were shedding tears that fell freely to the floor. "Mother, women and children cannot fight this battle. No more blood will be on my hands."  
  
"But if we."  
  
She kissed her mother's head to quieten her and then looked at the cloud of black smoke. "What assurances do I have that you will end this madness?" She asked with her misty blue eyes.  
  
"You have my word. As long as you are with me, no more harm will come to your kingdom." The smoke paused for a moment, contemplating the situation. "I do not need an answer now. Come to me by sunset tomorrow, else I will come and claim more of your peoples blood." And with his last vicious words, the smoke disappeared, leaving the two royals to huddle together, grief-stricken in a puddle of their tears. 


	3. Alone

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. I can only dream.  
  
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******************** Later that night .  
  
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. A lonely figure stood silently on the balcony of the palace, gazing out into the endless night sky. A cold wind blew her blonde pigtails, gently they fluttered around her face like butterflies.  
  
"Darling? Are you out here?" A soothing voice came from somewhere behind the lace curtains.  
  
"Yes Mother. I am."  
  
Queen Serenity soon joined Serena on the balcony and together they stood staring out into the ebony night. Lovingly, Serenity placed her arms around her daughters' waist. She held her tightly, never wanting to let her go.  
  
"It is beautiful, isn't it?" The young princess said, staring at the blue and green planet that was hovering in front of them.  
  
The Queen kissed her cheek tenderly. "You know, ever since you were a little girl, you use to want live there. Every night, when you were supposed to be in bed, I would catch you out here, staring at the Earth." The princess nodded her head and smiled cheekily. A gentle wind blew both their tresses, a ballet of silver and gold danced behind the two beauties. "Don't go." She whispered in to her daughters' ear and hugged her tighter. "Please don't leave me."  
  
She backed away from her mother and looked deeply into her silvery eyes. "You know that I have to. Please don't make this harder then it already is." Both of their eyes had started to redden from tears. The queen was silent. "We both know that this is for the best, I should have gone years ago."  
  
"Please." Queen Serenity begged softly, her breaking voice was barely audible. "Sweetheart."  
  
But Serena cut her off with a swift shake of her head. She led the queen to the edge of the balcony and pointed to the city in front of them. "Look down there. What do you see?"  
  
The queen gazed over the edge, down at her kingdom. The once marbled buildings had now turned to stone, crumbling away under the stress of war. Around the kingdom there were orange flames flickering. The soldiers from earth, who came and burned anything that was flammable, lighted the larger fires. The smaller ones, however, were fires lit by the Moon citizens. Homeless and starving, they made the fires to keep warm.  
  
The queen closed her eyes for a moment, a silvery tear spilling forth.  
  
"Without this war, the moon can have a chance to recover. We can rebuild our great kingdom." Serena smiled hopefully. The queen reluctantly nodded her head. As much as she didn't want to loose her only daughter, it was the right decision. "The sun will be setting on the earth in less then an hour. I must go to him."  
  
Serenity fell silent for a moment, but then she reached into a secret pocket behind her dress and pulled out something wrapped in a silk handkerchief. "This is for you." She said, handing the gift to her daughter. "If anything happens, or if you want to escape from him, this will help you."  
  
With a loving smile, she accepted the gift and pulled back the silky material. Her smile vanished with the mystery of what was inside. "What are you thinking?" She demanded, her gentle disposition disappearing at once.  
  
In her hands was a dagger, about thirty centimetres long. The steel blade glowed red from the eerie night sky, making the dagger look as though it had been stained with blood. The handle was made out of Moonstone, a precious crystal that found only in rare craters on the dark side of the moon. On the handle, there were half moons made out of pure gold. The dagger itself was as light as a feather to touch, but it weighed heavily on the young princesses heart. "How dare you give this to me. What do you expect me to do!" She yelled at her silent mother. "If you are expecting me to shed more blood." She paused, the anger inside of her was building up, so like any young lady, she stopped and counted to three. "Enough blood had been stained on my hands," she continues. "I will have no more." Still angry, she handed the weapon back to the queen.  
  
"Please take it. You may need it. If he tries," She stopped momentarily to swallow the lump in her throat. "If he tries to hurt you, or compromise you in anyway. Just remember, you owe that tyrant NOTHING!" The queen was surprised as the anger in her own voice. Like her daughter, she too took a moment to calm down. Serenity closed her eyes, but then she felt a gentle squeeze on her hand.  
  
"Don't worry. I am a big girl." Serena smiled sweetly. "Promise me that you will rebuild our kingdom. No matter what happens." She wiped her mother's cheeks dry. "Okay?" She asked and then took back the dagger. "If anything happens, I will use it."  
  
Serenity gave a grateful smile.  
"I must go now," She said, staring at the slowly darkening earth. "If I don't, it will be too late." She embraced her mother one last time.  
  
"You are always in my heart, my darling."  
  
"And you are in mine."  
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************ His Castle, on Earth .************ .  
  
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The dusk sky was painted with blood as a crimson sun faded away behind the distant mountains. Their shadowy peaks marched along the horizon like a dark army, soon to be blended into the black night sky. Nights were always dark here. Ever since the moon lost its sparkling lustre, the nights had grown black and cold, regardless what season it was. The chilling embrace of the night air destroyed everything it touched, the plants decayed, flowers perish and pure souls were easily fouled.  
  
Alone in his castle keep, he looked out upon the dying sun, letting the last of the warmth comfort what was left of his soul.  
  
His heart stopped beating. "She is not coming." He whispered sadly to himself, a diamond tear spilled forth from his ocean blue eyes. He wiped the tear away and looked at the shiny bead that was glistening on his hand. It was an unusual sight, for him to shed any kind of emotion. He stared at the watery drop like a child, enchanted that he could create something so beautiful, something so sad.  
  
Slowly brining it up to his mouth, he tasted the salty water. Its briny taste felt refreshing and strangely comforting, forcing him to experience a long forgotten memory.  
  
Years of battle had left his heart callous. It had become harder then stone, colder then ice and unfriendlier then the darkness of shadows. However, his heart was already broken before the war, the war was just a means to an end. To him it didn't matter if he won or lost. Although a part of him did want to win the war, another part of him just wanted his suffering to end.  
  
He had grown up alone, tormenting silently. His parents had died when he was mealy a child and so every day a part of him would too die, little by little.  
  
But during the night, he changed, changed into something evil. Something that would corrupt any pure soul it could find. Knowing this, the servants had left him while they had the chance, uttering prayers and spiteful words like he was the spawn of Satan himself.  
And that was his life. A life filled with empty rooms and lost hopes, a life without laughter or fun. Instead he grew up with the sound of the wind howling through the eves and the sight of cobwebs gathering in the dusty corners.  
The last of the glowing sun disappeared into the horizon. He shed another tear. Slowly, he watched it roll of his pale cheek and fall to its death below him. 'She isn't coming.'  
  
Suddenly, a huge knock echoed throughout the house. His heart jumped, springing back into life. He dare not move. Too frozen to open the door, too afraid to face her. He stood amongst the gargoyles, hoping to fade away into the shadowy night like the sun. With a loud creak, he heard the doors open. He stopped breathing. He wanted to be silent, not wanting to be discovered. He wanted her to leave.  
  
All these long years, he had waited for *her* to finally say that she would be with him. Now that his wait was over, he was scared. As soon as she saw him, she would hate him, he knew this. She would hate him even more then she already did, and he would loose her forever. Another sparkling tear splashed on the ground. He knew that she would break him, and when she did, the last of him would surely die.  
  
He closed his sapphire eyes for a moment, a final diamond tear spilled forth.  
  
He knew the truth about himself. All the names that she called him earlier at the palace were true. He was an ogre, a tyrant, and a bully. He had watched the war that had raged on for years, he had caused the war. Caused the suffering and death.  
The sun had finally departed.  
The change came again.  
A spark of anger burned within him as he thought of the battles, his classic evil smile retuning to his lips. 'They deserved it!' He thought to himself. 'They all deserve to die!' He felt no remorse for the war he had started. He was not sorry for the deaths, if anything, he was proud. Proud to show them all that he was not weak, happy to stop their taunting.  
  
By night, he could hear their mocking laughter on the wind. No matter what he did, he could still hear it. He use to scream out into the night for silence, but no silence ever came. It had all but driven him mad, until one day. On the most unlikely of days, he saw her. Saw the princess of the moon, and something within him stirred. Ever since that moment, he knew. He knew he had to have her, no matter what the cost.  
  
He gathered armies, men that served him only under fear that their families would suffer if they refused. With his vast armies he corrupted the moon, destroying everything that he touched. For him it was easy: by nightfall he would come and wreak havoc on the white kingdom. By dawn he would return to Earth, leaving his armies behind to finish off any survivors.  
He heard the door close. Had she gone? Had she left him here, decided that death would be better then spending even one second with him. He wiped his salty cheeks dry, he would never let her see him cry. Crying was a weakness he would never show. 'She will not hurt me.' He thought to himself, his heart frosting over again. All the emotions that had just filled his body had vanished with the sun. 'I won't let her, I won't let her inside my heart. Then she will be mine for an eternity. Even if I have to torture her until she screams to stop. She will be mine.'  
  
The last emotion left his body. His heart was stone once again. The princess would be reduced to a life of slavery. A life of misery and loneliness, just like his.  
A.N.  
  
First of all, thankyou all SO MUCH for those who have reviewed, (Even the people who seam to have a thing against the beast) I do really appreciate it. REALLY, REALLY, THANKYOU!  
  
So what did you think? I was trying to give you all an insight on his life, about what he thinks and feels? Did it work? Is there any sympathy there at all?  
  
After this chapter, the story will start. I hope that you all will stick with it. It is a romance, so don't be too worried about there being none. Although, I am thinking of changing the rating on this story. I am worried that I had written 'the beast' too dark for PG-13. Is it? It won't be any darker then this, in fact, it will lighten up a whole lot. (After all, romance has to ensue)  
  
I would love to know what you think, and if you have gotten confused about anything.  
  
Thankyou.  
  
Peace to all  
  
xxx Destiny xxx 


	4. No more then a slave

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters; they're just on loan for a little while.  
The sun rose early the next day, its golden beams falling gently upon Serena's sleeping face. From somewhere in the shadows of her room, he was watching her. Watching her every movement, every rise and fall of her chest, every dainty flutter of her eyelids, every beat of her heart. She started to stir, and so with a heavy sigh he left the room for the first time the entire night.  
  
Slowly, she woke and opened up her big blue eyes. "Where, where am I?" She asked to herself, half dazed and confused in her strange surroundings. Suddenly, she remembered, she was with him. She felt sick in her stomach as her memory retuned to her. Pulling the covers up to her neck, she huddled under the little comfort that the sheets provided, waiting for something to happen. Then suddenly, a loud rap echoed throughout the room, sending the dormant dust into a frenzy of movement.  
  
"Who is there?" She asked innocently, and then bit her lip from stupidity. There was only one other person in this castle, and she knew exactly who was at her door.  
  
"Please draw the curtains shut." A muffled voice came from outside.  
  
There was silence; lay sat motionless on the bed, still huddled under the covers. She wasn't scared, however. She was never scared, she had grown up in the midst of a war, after all. No, she was motionless because she was defiant. There was no way that she was going to be a good little lap dog for him.  
  
"Princess, please draw the curtains shut." He asked again, a hint of anger throbbing in his voice. The rap came at the door again, this time louder then before.  
  
Yet still, she remained motionless, a thousand and one thoughts running through her head. She decided to obey, but only this once.  
  
"Princess." He started again, but then stopped as he heard her footsteps walk away. The light underneath the door vanished. "Thankyou," he said nervously and opened up the huge mahogany doors. He walked in slowly, as if someone had put time on pause. He kept to the shadows of the room, making sure not to be seen by her. He kept his gaze upon the floor; he did not want to see the pain in her eyes. "Did, did you sleep well?" He asked for polite conversation, although, he already knew the answer.  
  
She was silent, watching him in the shadows. Trying to see him clearly.  
  
He placed a silvery tray down at his feet and took a small step back. "I have brought you breakfast." He said politely, and proceeded to wait for some kind of a thankyou. Nothing came. "It is not much, but I hope that you will enjoy it." Still, there was no reply.  
  
She stared at him, shooting icy daggers into his heart. Her heart was stone, he had made it that way, though deep inside of her, she was still compassionate. It was against her nature to be mean, but for him, he would make an exception.  
  
Feeling her anger, he turned to leave the room, but stopped immediately when he heard and angelic voice call behind him.  
  
"Take your tray with you. I am not hungry." She answered bitterly, the temperature in the room dropped 10 degrease.  
  
His heart sank. He turned to face her, still cloaked in the shadows. "Please eat, you should have something to eat. You will fall ill if you don't." He looked up from the ground for the first time. Lying across the bed was his angel, the shadows dancing upon her skin.  
  
"Good." She answered viciously, "Then at least I will be free from here!"  
  
A tear rolled down his face and splashed onto the tray at his feet, it broke his heart to confine such a beautiful thing to the shadows. He was in heaven when he was near her, but in hell when he thought of the pain he had caused her. "Please have breakfast." The concern broke through his voice. "Eat, dress, and then come down stairs."  
  
"I am not hungry," she said again spitefully.  
  
The anger started to flow through his blood, he could feel it pump through his veins with every beat of his heart but he chose not to say anything. For now, she had the right to be upset with him, so instead of retaliate, he once again turned to leave the room in silence.  
  
"Take the tray with you!" She barked at him, frustration suddenly roaring within her. She didn't want to be here, she didn't want to follow his rules. Inside her stomach she felt ill, she was never this nasty, but there was no was that she was going to be a co-operative prisoner. "I said I was not hungry!" Her stomach turned again.  
  
He swung around and kicked the tray so that her breakfast spilled onto the floor. A crystal glass that was filled with orange juice went rolling over near the bed, and stopped at its foot. "Fine. Dress, then come downstairs." He ordered, and then slammed the door shut, sending the dust in the room into another frenzy.  
  
On the opposite side of the door he stood, his face cupped in his gigantic hands. "Damit!" He cursed himself under his breath. "Damit, don't loose your control, don't. You have to show her. Show her who you are, it's the only way." He recited to himself and wiped away a tear. "It's the only way that this will work."  
  
It was noon, before the angel decided to show herself. Her royal air breathed life into the staleness of his castle as she walked down the stairs.  
  
"Your late." A voice called to her, ignoring it she continued walking. "I said that you are late!" He bellowed again, stepping out of the shadows momentarily. Luckily, her back was facing him.  
  
"You never gave me a time." She said defiantly. "All you said was to get dressed and come downstairs. You never said by when." She was a royal, that was for sure, and she had inherited all the usual royal haughtiness with it. "So what is my task?" She asked sarcastically. "You might as well know now, no matter what you do, you will never break me. Do you hear me?" She turned around, just missing him as he dived back into the shadows. "You can tell me to do whatever, but I will never belong to you." She had rehearsed the line a million times in her head, but it felt much better saying it aloud.  
  
"I have no tasks for you." He answered, almost offended. "I wish you no harm princess, nor for you to suffer."  
  
"Suffer." She spat out the words. "You do not know the meaning of the word!" He temper was running hot once again.  
  
He bit his lip. Should he tell her? Should he tell her the truth? Then she would understand, surely someone like her would understand. Immediately he brushed the thoughts from his head. He knew that if he told her, then she could never break the spell. She had to see his pure heart, without any guidance.  
  
"Believe me princess, I am sorry for your suffering." He bit his lip again, he had told her enough. "But I do not wish for you to suffer now. Believe me."  
  
"Do as you will." Her voice was croaky, as if she was about to cry. She spat the words out at him, as if she had just tasted something horrible. "I no longer care."  
  
"Princess, please." He started, but was interrupted by her.  
  
"Spare me you dignitaries, you are to low to try to be civil."  
  
His blood raged again, 'Control your temper.' He said to himself, knowing that his temper was his greatest downfall. 'She has the right to be angry, just control yourself.' He breathed a deep breath and then spoke quickly. "You are not here to be a slave, you can do as you will. You may go anywhere you like, except the woods, outside the castle, and of coarse, you can't go home. Do as you please anywhere else. Dinner will be served at 3 pm. Please be there promptly."  
  
"See, there you go again. 'Be here, don't go there.' Face it. I am your slave, you just don't want to seam like a monster, but I know you. You are a monster!" She yelled at him, but then silenced herself, shocked at the anger that was boiling up inside of her.  
  
"Fine." He bellowed, "You want to act like a slave, then you will be one. You can start by cleaning this room. Dust it, sweep it, mop it, and polish it. I will be back before sundown to see you progress." He paused for a moment, drawing in a long deep breath. "I did not wish it to be like this princess, but until you learn you place, and learn some respect, you will be treated as you should." And with a fling of his heavy black coat, he disappeared somewhere deeper into the shadows of the castle, leaving her alone to sulk in the darkness.  
  
A.N.  
  
Hi everyone. Well, I decided that I would take two paths with this story, one a darker and the other a lighter path. The darker version of this story is called: The beast and his beauty. You should be able to find a link to it under my name if you want to read. The first three chapters are identical to this story, but the rest wont be. Hopefully they will end up being two different stories. That is the plan anyway. ^_^. Well, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter. Peace to all, and thankyou for the reviews.  
  
xxx Destiny xxx 


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